[staciesbaby]

I think all of us Traverse owners, especially those with children (or adults) who regularly occupy the rear seats, should band together and complain to the NHTSA at NHTSA.gov about the painful, dangerous second row seat belt anchors . If enough of us complain, at least there will be an investigation....one or two won't cut it. You can view others' complaints also, so you can see how the numbers are piling up. If anyone else has some input, let me know. If we all work together, I think we can get this done! :thumb: This is a repost from Jan. 13...I just figured I would try one more time....can't believe nobody else cares. Sorry if I'm :deadhorse:

 

[staciesbaby]

Sorry it double-posted hno:

Double post has been removed by forum administration[/color]

 

[Toddzilla67]

I think all of us Traverse owners, especially those with children (or adults) who regularly occupy the rear seats, should band together and complain to the NHTSA at NHTSA.gov about the painful, dangerous second row seat belt anchors . If enough of us complain, at least there will be an investigation....one or two won't cut it. You can view others' complaints also, so you can see how the numbers are piling up. If anyone else has some input, let me know. If we all work together, I think we can get this done! :thumb: This is a repost from Jan. 13...I just figured I would try one more time....can't believe nobody else cares. Sorry if I'm :deadhorse:

First, we don't have adults occupying the rear seats and children aren't having to sit in the middle portion of the rear seat either. I suspect many of the rest on this forum are in the same boat as I am. Furthermore, I would not put an adult in the middle seat of the 2nd or 3rd row. Kids (ages 10 to 12) may be able to sit there, but there just isn't adequate room for an adult. Sometimes we just need to take two cars to our destination...

Second, have you used the word "dangerous" as an opinion or scientifically proven fact? Just asking...

 

[cgim5804]

First, we don't have adults occupying the rear seats and children aren't having to sit in the middle portion of the rear seat either. I suspect many of the rest on this forum are in the same boat as I am. Furthermore, I would not put an adult in the middle seat of the 2nd or 3rd row. Kids (ages 10 to 12) may be able to sit there, but there just isn't adequate room for an adult. Sometimes we just need to take two cars to our destination...

Second, have you used the word "dangerous" as an opinion or scientifically proven fact? Just asking...


I already filed a complaint. The second row seats are for adults and children and just because you don't have adults sitting there at this time doesn't mean you won't at any point in the future. It ridiculos that an adult can't sit here or there in any car and bottom line, it's not safe at all. My mother bruised her hip from the buckle jamming into the side of her after I was cut off and had to hit the brakes. It also just isn't the middle seat, trying putting a booster seat on either end and try buckling the seat belt, difficult to do when your kid is in the chair. A couple of times it felt like it was clicked in when in fact it was not.

They recalled them because they could break when the second row is folded down so you would think they would have changed it then but they did not. I don't see how the "fix" for this problem actually fixed anything. I say we all complain and get this fixed.

 

[staciesbaby]

Toddzilla - thanks for your input. As far as seating arrangements go, first of all, no disrespect intended, but don't you drive an LTZ? It just seems to me that us 8-seaters might be able to make more informed, actual seat-time decisions. And yes, USUALLY children would occupy the rear seat areas, but certainly not always. I would bet that at least 90% of all Traverse owners considered potential seating capacity in their buying decision. When manufacturers list seating capacity, it is not adults, children, small adults, etc....it is an "average" adult. I purchased an 8 seat capacity vehicle...I'll be damned if I have to "take two cars" to get somewhere...I could have bought 2 Honda Fit's and been getting 40+ MPG!!! As far as dangerous goes, #1, if i am just sitting there passively and something is jabbing and bruising my hip, yes, I consider that dangerous. #2 - At least one member of this forum (can't remember their name) has complained of great difficulty in connecting car seats to these anchors. Now that is certainly an issue which I consider dangerous. No, not scientifically proven, just strong opinion. Sorry, I don't work for Consumer Reports. At least not yet.

 

[Toddzilla67]

Toddzilla - thanks for your input. As far as seating arrangements go, first of all, no disrespect intended, but don't you drive an LTZ? It just seems to me that us 8-seaters might be able to make more informed, actual seat-time decisions. And yes, USUALLY children would occupy the rear seat areas, but certainly not always. I would bet that at least 90% of all Traverse owners considered potential seating capacity in their buying decision. When manufacturers list seating capacity, it is not adults, children, small adults, etc....it is an "average" adult. I purchased an 8 seat capacity vehicle...I'll be damned if I have to "take two cars" to get somewhere...I could have bought 2 Honda Fit's and been getting 40+ MPG!!! As far as dangerous goes, #1, if i am just sitting there passively and something is jabbing and bruising my hip, yes, I consider that dangerous. #2 - At least one member of this forum (can't remember their name) has complained of great difficulty in connecting car seats to these anchors. Now that is certainly an issue which I consider dangerous. No, not scientifically proven, just strong opinion. Sorry, I don't work for Consumer Reports. At least not yet.

Thanks for your response.

Yes, I do drive the LTZ w/ a 7 seat configuration. But I felt compelled to reply since all Traverse owners have the narrow middle seat in the 3rd row.

 

[staciesbaby]

Hey CGIM - read your complaint...great work! TO ALL OTHERS INTERESTED....A quicker link to file a complaint is safercar.org then just click "file a complaint" and follow the prompts. Thanks! :angel:

 

[cgim5804]

People should certainly file complaints. Crazy that they even let them come up with the current fix they have for the buckle, I don't see how it fixes the problem of it breaking, never mind it hurting people.

 

[lyfizguud]

I agree with you about the bucket 2nd row seats. They drive my "bigger than average" family members crazy. I have taken to flipping over the latch to get it into the buckle so it doesn't rub me the wrong way when I sit back there. I'm sure this isn't what Chevy had in mind but this is what I have to do. We did travel with 4 grown ups for an 8 hour drive last summer and made it alive. I don't consider them dangerous. I'm just amazed that a large adult didn't test out that design before it hit the road. The kids have never complained but they don't have grown up hips. I love this car so I've lived with a few little annoyances and plan to keep it, just hoping they will improve them in the future.

 

[bigbluetraverse]

I think everyone should buckle into a racecar once in your life and you will never complain about your car seat belts again... ha ha..

 

[Rocky]

Interesting. Will have to check this out currently vascillating between traverse and. a Burb. The macho man in me like the Burb.

 

[rbarrios]

I wonder if they had to compromise with design- buckles that wont get lost (you know--- theres people who wont buckle up because they cant find the buckle thats fallen into the seat crack)...

seat design- and 'average' size people.
I mentioned this before... but we know people have been getting bigger- weight wise.
perfect example- is my house. built in 1952. Small house.
The bathrooms are small. The main bathroom---cubby hole where the toilet sits- was most definitely designed for people of the 1950's.
Im 5 9 and weight 170. I have no issues with the area.
BUT-- theres no way- a 200-250 lb woman is going to fit there comfortably.. or a 250 275 lb man.
Speaking of the 2nd bathroom- way smaller space....
Im pretty sure that if I sold and a 'bigger' couple bought the house--- they would HAVE to tear down walls or modify something.


so with the car seats in the Lamdas... they must have figured what they could do to make the seatbelts usable by most people.
I can already see it..... so we make rigid buckles so that MOST people can fit and use the belt---------
OR we makebuckles that can fall (get lost) where most WILL NOT use the belts....... in which case I can see people suing GM for belts that were hard to find or lost in the seats........
If a big person sued---- im sure lawyers would bring up the average person--- and theyd say--- you exceed the weight of the average persons.... blah blah blah..... kind of like the lesse of 2 evils.......

 

[Rocky]

Stores are putting card swiping machines at 4 ft or so in height. Tall people like myself at 6ft 4 have to bend over big time to accommodated these designs. Glad I don't have s bad back.

 

[bayner66]

Keep in mind what recalls are for... safety issues... such as items that cause fires, stalling, loss of control, no breaking and the like. It also takes a recognized pattern or number of similar incidents to be investigated with a fault identified before a recall is forced on the manufacturer. Getting a sore butt from a seat belt buckle is not a safety issue (aside from someone not buckling up but then that is a stupidity issue with the user, also against the law and not the belts fault).

Manufacturers do make running changes to parts all the time to fix problems identified through customer complaint or dealer identified issues. Thus we have dealer "Tech Bulletins" such as the timing chain changes, PS changes and so on. So far the complaints about the rear seat belts are not numerous enough to cause a change.

 

[Sandy9s]

We've owned our 2012 Traverse LT1 for 3 weeks and tonight was the first time I sat in the 2nd row.
Wow == I was never so disappointed in my whole life! It hurt my right rear hip after sliding into the driver's side 2nd seat. I'm 73 years old and have COPD..........when I'm not comfortable, my breathing is more labored.
This definitely needs a Recall. There is no way 3 elderly people could sit in the 2nd row seats. And even the 2 side people will get very sore hips.

We will never own another Traverse.

 

[odypilots]

I must have posted in the thread that got deleted, so I'll repost. My adult daughter first brought this to my attention when we had 7 passengers in our 8 seater. She was in the middle row, middle seat between two car seats. We couldn't get either car seat in the middle position because of the height of the seat belt anchor and it's position too far inboard. I would much rather have a car seat in the middle because of the lack of a head restraint for an adult. She's average height and weight, and said it was the most uncomfortable seat she's every set in. Being the type that believes in never asking someone to sit where I wouldn't, at the next driver change, switched with her and found her to not have exaggerated. At 6 ft and 165 lbs and slim hipped, I definitely fit the average definition. A severe and constant poke in the right hip. Maybe jab would be a better description.

As I posted before, when looking at the design, I see how they ended up like this. They wanted the smaller folding section to be wide enough to allow adults into the roomy back row, and didn't want the anchor to fall down into the seat, but they need to come up with a different set up, in my opinion.

 

[Coppertop666]

I don't think they are as bad as some make them out to be but I do see room for improvement thats for sure. I think if the seatbelt "head" was flexible but was still able to pivot when the seat was folded it would be perfect. The seatbelts on my GTI are flexible to allow the seat to side forward easily and they use a wire rope where it is flexible. If the same design was incorporated in our middle seats then I would see no issue

 

[odypilots]

I don't think they are as bad as some make them out to be but I do see room for improvement thats for sure. I think if the seatbelt "head" was flexible but was still able to pivot when the seat was folded it would be perfect. The seatbelts on my GTI are flexible to allow the seat to side forward easily and they use a wire rope where it is flexible. If the same design was incorporated in our middle seats then I would see no issue

I agree, but there must have been some issue. I can't believe they didn't consider that.

 

[Chevrolet Customer Svc]

We've owned our 2012 Traverse LT1 for 3 weeks and tonight was the first time I sat in the 2nd row.
Wow == I was never so disappointed in my whole life! It hurt my right rear hip after sliding into the driver's side 2nd seat. I'm 73 years old and have COPD..........when I'm not comfortable, my breathing is more labored.
This definitely needs a Recall. There is no way 3 elderly people could sit in the 2nd row seats. And even the 2 side people will get very sore hips.

We will never own another Traverse.

Thank you for sharing your feedback about the second row seats. Your comments will be saved where various departments within General Motors can review your comments.

You can contact the dealership you purchased the vehicle from to see if there is anything they can do to make them more comfortable for you.

Michelle, Chevrolet Customer Service

 

[cgim5804]

I commented a while back on this, even filed a complaint with the NHTSA. The design is completely unacceptable. Try putting 3 booster seats back there, impossible. I have two and as it is, they have to sit kind of sideways a bit so that my girls can click in. Measure the distance between the two buckles, anyone bigger than a 12 year old isn't going to fit.